"are high energy prices killing you?" "john ward had a choice." instead you raised their taxes. "mothers against child predators." "certified to be true and accurate." >> well, yeah, you can say anything you want. >> ryssdal: so these went out a week before the election. >> less than that, within the last four days. you have no time to respond that way. >> ryssdal: ward lost that primary to mike miller by just 24 votes. >> one of the biggest shockers of the primary election that year, because he was thought to be in safe shape politically, a conservative republican, but got picked off by these groups. >> the impact of receiving these graphic things right before you went to the polls. it was very, very effective. >> ryssdal: john ward wasn't alone. these kinds of flyers started to show up in mailboxes all across montana in 2008. it was something new. the tone and tactics rubbed some people the wrong way and a complaint was filed that soon led to an investigation. what nobody could foresee, thought, was that these mailers were about to start a fight that, in time, would go all the